by Cdr. Bud Slabbaert Isn’t it sad to observe how few people around one, who can really be trusted. They always look at one to see how much they can out of one and benefit from one. It appears that over the years this phenomena has become worse and even continues to get worse. It is everywhere, local, regional and international. It is all about money and power. Human true values get farther and farther in the background. What makes it particularly sad is not merely that some people are selfish, opportunistic, or driven by money and power. It is…
Author: The Publisher
PHILIPSBURG — Sixteen years ago St. Maarten became an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Wouter Veenenedaal, extraordinary professor Kingdom Relations at Leiden University and Oberon Nauta, a senior researcher at the DSP-Group shed their light on the results in an opinion piece published in The Volkskrant this week. Their observations suggest that St. Maarten (as well Curacao) is unable to execute all the tasks it has on its plate. “Autonomy is asking too much off the small Caribbean countries,” Veenendaal and Nauta write. “Because vital government tasks get stuck and situations threaten to become unacceptable, the…
GUSTAVIA – St. Barthélemy commemorated the abolition of slavery on October 9, marking the historic date in 1847 when Sweden abolished slavery on the island, then under Swedish rule. The ceremony took place at Fort Gustav III, beneath the historic lighthouse overlooking Gustavia. The gathering centered on an old, towering fromager tree, also known as a kapok tree, which has become a symbolic setting for the island’s remembrance of slavery and its abolition. During the ceremony, Xavier Lédée, president of the Territorial Council of St. Barthélemy, laid a wreath of flowers at the foot of the tree in tribute to…
The Caribbean underuses private aviation as an economic sector By Cdr. Bud Slabbaert The Caribbean understands aviation. But does it fully understand private aviation? The potential blind spot is the distinction between airline passengers and private-aviation passengers. Commercial aviation brings visitors according to a published route network. Private aviation can bring visitors according to their own economic decisions, be it property ownership, investment, yacht activity, and they bring high-value spending. Yet, often with a much smaller number of passengers per arrival. The ultimate objective should not be increased private aircraft movements. It is about more high-value people coming to the…
~ As artificial intelligence transformed Anguilla’s .AI domain and “super intelligence” sends registrations of Slovenia’s .SI soaring, Sint Maarten’s AnyKey.sx is positioning .SX for what could be the next great technology frontier: Space eXploration. ~ PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten — Some revolutions arrive with a bang. Others begin quietly, almost unnoticed, until suddenly the world realizes that something fundamental has changed. Over the past several years, an unusual transformation has been taking place in the domain name industry. Two letter country code domain extensions, originally created simply to identify places on the internet, are acquiring entirely new meanings because their letters…
Founder Angelique J.G. Romou Expresses Gratitude to Participating Businesses and Disappointment Over Delays in Coupon Distribution to Public School Teachers As the world commemorates World Teachers’ Day on October 5, educator and youth advocate Angelique J.G. Romou proudly celebrates the fifth anniversary of Loving Our Teachers Out Loud, her annual Teacher Appreciation Initiative. Born out of a genuine love and appreciation for the teaching profession, the initiative seeks to recognize the dedication, sacrifices and invaluable contributions of the educators who help shape St. Maarten’s future. As an educator herself, Romou believes that teachers deserve to be celebrated not only for…
PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten (October 4, 2026) – The streets of Philipsburg were transformed into a vibrant sea of pink on Friday, October 2, as more than 200 community members participated in the Annual Pink Parade organized by the Positive Foundation and Elektralyets Foundation as part of the 2026 Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign. The event formed one of the key highlights of the foundations’ month-long initiative focused on education, awareness, early detection, survivorship, and support. The parade brought together cancer survivors, caregivers, advocates, healthcare supporters, community organizations, educational institutions, corporate partners, parliamentarians and residents who marched in solidarity with everyone affected…
Member of Parliament Francisco Lacroes is questioning Government’s decision to host a new Kingdom Summit in November, arguing that the objectives outlined by Prime Minister Dr. Luc Mercelina closely resemble those already being pursued through the Interparliamentary Kingdom Consultation, IPKO, which St. Maarten will host less than two months later. Mercelina told Parliament that the Kingdom Summit is scheduled for November 17 and 18, 2026, with St. Maarten serving as host. He described the event as a government-to-government consultation involving St. Maarten, Aruba, Curaçao and the Netherlands. According to the Prime Minister, the summit is intended to strengthen cooperation and…
EDITORIAL: Should St. Maarten Buy Mullet Bay? Yes, We Should Seriously Try! A Letter to the Editor published today by Melisa Molanus asks what may turn out to be one of the most consequential questions confronting St. Maarten in the coming years: Should St. Maarten buy Mullet Bay? It is a question this news site believes deserves much more than a passing discussion. In fact, for us, the idea is not new. Ten years ago, on September 19, 2016, we published a letter under the headline “Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is.” The argument then was simple. If the…
Letter to the Editor: The Math Makes the Case for Exploring a Government Purchase of Mullet Bay Dear Editor, The ongoing budget debate in Parliament has exposed a critical choice concerning the future of Mullet Bay and Sint Maarten’s long-term financial obligations under the ENNIA resolution. Before we allow one of the country’s most valuable pieces of privately owned land to pass into other hands, we should first ask a very simple question: If Sint Maarten is already committed to paying for the ENNIA resolution for the next 30 years, why shouldn’t we seriously examine whether acquiring Mullet Bay could…
